By BJ Austin, KERA News
http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/kera/local-kera-958032.mp3
Dallas, TX – A couple of candidates for Dallas Mayor mixed it up at an early campaign forum yesterday. KERA's BJ Austin says it was one of the first forums featuring all four candidates.
The conference room at the North Texas Food Bank was standing room only. A question from the audience about "affordable housing" prompted a few vollies between Mike Rawlings, the city's former Homeless Czar, and former Dallas Police Chief David Kunkle. Rawlings told the crowd he knows what communities need and how to build affordable housing. Kunkle expressed his doubts. And Rawlings fired back.
Kunkle: It's easy to live in a Preston Hollow neighborhood, or a Far North Dallas gated neighborhood, and tell other people what they should do and the kind of housing they should have in their neighborhoods.
Rawlings: I'm offended. And my Preston Hollow neighbors who have given hundreds of thousands of dollars, millions of dollars, to this city have just been offended.
The candidates agreed there needs to be heightened awareness of the problem of hunger. Councilman Ron Natinsky says hunger is a city-wide problem that needs more focus.
Natinsky: The perception that maybe people in the northern part of the city all live in McMansions, all have plenty of food and all drive BMW's - that is not the case. You can go to neighborhoods in all parts of the city and find people that are needy.
Real estate executive Edward Okpa was the only one to offer a specific suggestion to help fight hunger: a week-long media campaign.
Okpa: We have such things for cancer, or for other occurrences. Why don't we ask everybody in this region, give us a dollar. That's six million of us.
In the two minutes each candidate was given to explain why he should be Mayor, Mike Rawlings, former CEO of Pizza Hut, cited his business experience.
Rawlings: I've spent all my life in the private sector; large companies, small companies. Grew things, cut budgets. I believe have an outside perspective at City Hall is ultimately what taxpayers need.
Chief Kunkle wants to focus on basic services like streets instead of big ticket items.
Kunkle: I think the deal has been that if you invest in convention center hotels, or if you invest in bridges, or spend money on arts museums, somehow that's going to flow back to people who live in the city.
Kunkle says it doesn't. Councilman Ron Natinsky, retired international businessman, says there must be a balance between basic services and big quality of life projects.
Natinsky: I think I bring the leadership ability to make that happen. I'm the person that doesn't take no for an answer. I find ways to get things done.
And the Nigerian-born Okpa says he's running because he has the real estate know how to bring economic development, and because of what his father taught him about servant leadership.
Okpa: I'm the son of a Chief. The reason I run for Mayor is service. It's not a job, it's a service.
The four candidates will meet in a number of forums between now and Election Day, May 14th.